Railway crossing



Oct. 22, 1940. E. COOK ET AL.

RAILWAY CROSSING Filed May 22, 1939 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 7 3nventors.

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Oct. 22, 1940. E cooK g- A 2,218,603

RAILWAY CROSSING Y Filed May'22, 1939 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Oct. 22, 1940. E.COOK ET AL 2,213,603

RAILWAY CROSSING Filed May 22, 1939 s Sheets-Sheet 4 mum R Y Z'mnentore:

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Patented Oct. 22, 1940 2,218,603 RAILWAY CROSSING .Earnshaw Cook,SterlingtomN. and James Chicago Heights, Ill), assignors to Th andFoundry Company, N. Y., a corporation oi Delaware Huber, Chicago,

Brake Shoe Application May 22, lss'sgseiai No. 274,878

19 Claims.

This invention relates to railway crossings of the box type, and methodof producing the same,

in whichthe footings, the wall members upstanding from said footings,and the horizontal web portion bridging the spaces between the wallmembers and providing intersecting flangeways and tread surfaces are allformed in one integral casting designed appropriately for optimumfoundry practice and uniform heat treatment that is resorted to fordeveloping a desired structure in the metal, for instance, whenmanganese steel is used, and in which it is also desirable to workhardenthe metal of the wheel receiving surfaces at the corners ofintersection.

One object of the invention is to provide a design of railway crossingwhich, while leaving the body of the crossing adequately sustained'froman underlying and wheel treads in the immediate vicinity of the crossingpoint, free from solid support upon the bed but with vertical support inuse at points radially removed from the point of intersection, and atthe same time leaving the crossing free for work-hardening of its cornerelements under pressure. To this end,'such service support as isprovided for the bridging webthat carries the flangeways and treadsurfaces is made removable inorder to expose substantially the entiresurface directly beneath the tread corners that are to be work-hardenedfor the introduction of an anvil that Will absorb the work-hardeningpressure without transmission of strain to,the box-like structure; suchanvil being removable and the service support in the vicinity of thecrossing center being replaceable at will. Another important conditionattained by having a removable service support (preferably-a grid) aswell as a removable anvil in a crossing of this kind, is avoidance ofany over-proportioning in' thickness of the crossing structure, formheat treatment of the crossing, as well as to prevent internaldiscontinuities normally resulting from the transition of molten metalto solid state, as for example, when the crossing is made of 10-14%manganese steel.

The invention further embodies ii -its scope the provision of a separateand replaceable grid of such a construction that the same may be used asI an anvil adapted to be positioned in supporting relation to thebridging web of the crossing to at the flangeways during thework-hardening of the pads and 'which may be secured in said supportingrelation to said flangeways to provide the completed assembly after thework-hardening has been performed.

base plate, will have its flangeways thereby permitting uni- Y., andAlbert F.

It. Hewitt, Jr., e American .New York,

' 'As a still further object of the present invention, the samecomprehends a structure for the separable and replaceable grid whichprovides suitable metal sections amenable to proper heat treatment andto prevent internal discontinuities normally resulting in foundrypractice from the transition of molten metal to the solid state.

Still a further object within the purview of the present invention is toprovide a separable grid which, in its cooperative relation with theflangeways of the crossing,

provides substantially uniform extended bearing relation for theflangeways outwardly from their intersection whereby the body portion ofthe crossing member is of double arched construction, eliminates thenotched due to the formation of of the invention is to insure suc-Another object cessful foundry practice at which in effect beamstructure thereof the flangeways therein.

points in the box-like structure adjacent to lines bisecting the anglesbetween the branches of the crossing through which it is united to trackrails, and particularly successful casting of angles ofdifferent-amplitude between said branches which in the supply of moltenmetal. other feature of the at middle points in the vertical walls ingrisers require variations To this end, aninvention consists in providofthe crossing corresponding to the aforesaid bisecting lines.

Other objects have to do with structural details incident to foundrypractice and resultant structure constituting features of identificationof the invention which will be hereinafter more fully referred to.

Other objects, features, capabilities and ad thereby. Referring to theFigures 1 to vantages are comprehended by the invention, as will laterappear and as are inherently possessed drawings: 4, inclusive, are planviews of body portions of crossing structures embodying the severalfeatures of the present invention and made-for effecting crossings atdifferent angles of intersection;

vertical plane of crossing corners;

Figure 5 is a section through a crossing in'the intersection and showingthe anvil used for condensing pads of metal at the Figure 6 is aperspective view of a crossing in:

cluding in its design,

metal pads on the tread corners intended to be pressed into coincidencewith the upper plane of the treads for the purpose I of improving thewearing qualities of the crossing;

Figure-'7 is a view of a' crossingand in associadicated by the linel2a:l2:c

tlon therewith the tool used for work-hardening of the treads;

Figure 8 is a perspective view of a crossing such as shown in Figure 6or Figure 'I in inverted position, with the service support of thebridging web removed, the heads employed for insuring adequate metal atcrucial points in the casting being indicated in dotted lines;

Figure 9 is a perspective view ofthe service support of the bridging webin the vicinity of the crossing center;

Figure 10 is a sectional view of a crossing in its mold, the sectionbeing taken in the vertical plane of two heads located on opposite sidesof the crossing center and in a plane that bisects the angle between twoof the branches that connect the crossing with the track rails;

Figure 11 is a plan view of a crossing of given angularity, showing indotted lines vertical supporting walls extending transversely to sidewalls of the box-like structure and integrally uniting portions of thecasting which provide the flangeways of the crossing as well as the gridwhich affords verticalsupport of the portion of the bridging web in thevicinity of the crossing section;

Figure 12 is a vertical section in a plane m in Figure 11;

Figure 13 is a vertical section in a plane indicated by the line|3:l:l3:c in Figure 11;

Figure 14 is a view similar to Figure 11, illustrating by dotted linesthe anvil used for rendering service support to the bridging web, thisview also showing depressible pads on the crossing corners;

Figure 15 is a vertical sectional view showing the application of ananvil appropriate to the pad-depressing treatment of the crossing shownin Figure 14; 1

Figure 16 is a view in perspective of an alternative construction for acrossing made in accordance with the present invention, the same beingshown in inverted position;

Figure 17 is a view in perspective of the crossing of Figure 16disclosing a separate and replaceable grid disposed in and connected tothe same in operative position; and

Figure 18 is a view in perspective of the grid used in the assembly ofFigure li of the drawings.

c The present application is'a continuation-inpart of application SerialNo. 214,474, filed June 18, 1938. s

Referring to Figures 1 to '7, A represents a body portion and B fourcrossing branches adapted to connect said body portion with rails of atrack in which the crossing is used. C represents flangeways, and Dcrossing corners deve1 developing the oped by said fiangeways. CornersD, in Figures 1 to 6, inclusive, are formed with pads E, F and G which,when compressed into coincidence with a the tread plane of the crossing,lend to the metal of said corners a structural character that improvesthe wearing quality of the crossing. H,

in Figure 5, represents an anvil conforming to the under surface of the'bridging web of the crossing and projecting below the plane of the baseupon which the crossingrests in order to absorb all of the pressureimposed upon the pads E, F and G in developing work-hardening of thecrossing corners as described. Anvil H has reentrant portions that admitthe ribs C in,

which the fiangeways C are formed, and these reentrant portions adaptthe anvil to sustain the ribs 0' against lateral distortion under .the.

high order of pressure imposed in leveling the.

pads. The anvil H completely relieves the upstanding walls I of thebox-like body of the crossing during the work-hardening of the crossingat the pads and the same is removed and replaced by the grid M, as willhereinafter more fully appear.

In Figure 7, the crossing corners D are smooth or without pads forwork-hardening in improving the structure of the treads of the crossing.This may mean eitherthat the pads were omitted as not being necessary inthe particular instance,

onal portion, heads L are located at such diagonal portions and will bevariously proportioned as indicated in dotted lines in Figure 8, wherethe characteristic angle of the crossing employs a wide angle on onebisecting line of a crossing and a relatively smaller angle 'on theother bisecting line of the crossing. As may also be seen in Figure 10,the heads L (shown in full lines, in section) and the head L (shown indotted lines) are of different capacity and chest a substantiallyuniform feed of molten metal in all cases by reason of the relation oftheir feeding capacity to the volume of metal demanded.

M, in Figure 9, is a grid that affords the service support for thebridging web of the crossing.

9. It carries an upstanding step P through which it sustains thebridging wall of the crossing through the medium of the ribs C which arethe portions of the crossing that rest upon said step. Thus the grid isgiven a Z shaped section, one portion of which provides a frame M andthe other portion a flange or step P, while the projections N lend tothe grid the form of a spider which facilitates its mounting in theupstanding walls of the box-like structure. mension of the grid M,including the step P, is precisely equal to the distance between thehorizontal plane of the under faces of the ribs C and the plane of theunder faces of the 'upstanding walls I, so that when the'crossing standsupon a suitable bed, preferably a plate of substantial thickness,for'instance, about inch, the bridging web. will be in proper support.The portions of the ribs C that seat upon the step P of the grid M aresomewhat back from the crossingpoint X, with the result that thoseportions of the ribs C are free of immediate support and thereforecapable of exercising some resiliency under the load of car wheels.

Figures 11 to 13 inclusive and 14 and 15 show additional illustrativeembodiments of modified construction embodying the invention andincorporating elements of similar construction to those shown in theabove described figures. Ac-

cordingly, similar' reference characters have been stantially to thepreviously described embodiw The vertical dilying at the crossing pointX ments and similarly includes a body portion A and four crossingbranches B adapted to connect the said body portion with rails and atrack with which the crossing is used. The flangeways G, all ashereinbefore described. The said walls- .of the crossing branches B ofthe present embodiment are reinforced by way of webs l and i2 and thesaid webs intersect as at i l to provide channel-shaped members at thepoints where the risers or heads'are located for feeding the moltenmetal into the mold forming the same.

The present embodiment embraces a grid 16 adapted to have cooperativebearing relation with the ribs C in which the flangeways C are formed toprovide a support for the arched bridging web orthe crossing whenposition, it being further contemplated that the grid serve also as ananvil to support the said ribs C during the work-hardening processconstituted by pressure imposed in leveling the pads E, F and G.'

In order to this dual capacity and will provide a grid which will servein jected to wheel loads, the said grid 16 is formed with radiallydisposed arms i8, 20, 22 and 24, each of which is provided with arecess, such as 26, terminating in spaced relation 'to one anotheradjacent the central portion of the grid member to provide the hub 28 ofsolidconstruction. The said recesses 26 are formed to provide opposedupstanding walls. such as 30 and 32, and an integrally formed bridgingweb 34 for each of the arms. The base portion of this grid is formed asby means of intersecting webs 36 and 38 laterally extending from theupstanding webs 30 and 32 between the adjacent arms, thus providingextended bearing surfaces for supporting the grid in operative position.

The grid 16 has an extended bearing area defined by the outline of theradially extending arms and the hub whereby the grid is adapted to haveextended bearing engagement vwith the bridging web of the crossingimmediately below the intersection of the said fian'geways and for asubstantial distance outwardly therefrom along thesaid ribs, it beingunderstood, of course, that this extended and uniform bearing relationof the grid with this bridging web is effected through the planesurfaces of the under side of the ribs which engage the grid.

In order to position the grid in its assembled relation to the crossing,weld joints All are provided between the intersections N and webs 36 ofthe grid, these welds being flush with the .bot-

tom surface of the grid and the surfaces formed a by the intersections I4.

By providing a structure of the type disclosed in Figures 16 to 18inclusive, the grid which is used in the final assembly as a support forthe bridging web of the crossing can be effectively used' as an anvilduring the process of work- "hardening the pads which may be formed onthe upper surface of the crossing adjacent the intersection of thefiangeways. Furthermore, the separable grid provides a structure havingall of the attributes of the herein described embodiments insofar asfoundry practice is concerned, and the welds 40 are such that the gridmay be replaced at any time by cutting these welds and inserting thesame is in operative properly Sl DP Ort the ribs of the fiangeways whenthe device is sub- .within said body upon a new grid in place of the oneformerly connected to the crossing member.

While we have herein described and upon the drawings shown illustrativeembodiments'of the invention, it is to be understood that the inventionis not limited thereto but may comprehend other constructions,arrangements of parts, details and features without departing from thespirit of the invention.

We claim: 1. A railway crossing structure of substantially the characterdescribed, comprising a box-like structure 'formed with a body and aplurality of crossing branches having upstanding portions,

and a top portion in the form of a bridging web 'integral with the saidupstanding portions and connecting the same, said upstanding andbridging portions being so constructed and arranged as to providesubstantially uniform sections amenable to proper heat treatment and toprevent internal discontinuities normally resulting from the transitionof molten metal to solid state, and the bridging portion being formedwith fiangeways and tread surfaces, and the portions" in which thefiangeways are formed being developed as downwardly presented ribsterminatring short of the plane of the base of the upstanding portion,said crossing being provided with a separately for-med load-sustaininggrid disposed are seated, and the thickness of said grid being such thatits under face lies in the plane of the surfaces from which theupstanding members rise.

which the flangeway ribs,-

2. In a railway crossing structure of substantially the characterdescribed, a box-like structure formed with a body and a plurality ofcrossing branches including upstanding walls and a bridging web portionconnecting the tops of adjacent walls, said web portion providingflangeways and wheel receiving surfaces, a supporting grid disposedwithin said body presenting seats for the bridging web portion beneath aportion of the flangeways, and seating recesses in the upstanding wallsof the crossing receiving and positioning the grid.

'3. A railway crossing structure as described in claim 2, in which thegrid comprises a frame portion extending inwardly from the portion thatis received by the upstanding walls, and a step extending inwardly andupwardly from said frame portion and providing the seats for the webportion.

4. In a railway crossing structure of the character described comprisinga box-like structure 65 including upstanding walls, a separately, formedsupporting grid of Z-section, and means for connecting said grid to theupstanding walls of the crossing. 4

5. A railway crossing structure as described in I claim 1, in which thesaid grid comprises upstanding webs integrally connectedwith a bridgingweb.

6. A railway crossing structure as described in claim 1, in which thesaid grid is formed with radially extending arms having bearing relationthroughout their length with said flangeway ribs. '7. A railway crossingstructure as described in claim 1, in which the said grid is formed withradially extending arms provided with bridging I webs having bearingrelation throughout their length with the said flangeway ribs.

8. A railway crossing structure as described in claim 1, in which thefacesbf the said fiangeway ribs are substantially in a plane parallel tothe I claim 1, in which the faces of the said fiangeway ribsare'substantially in a plane parallel to the plane of the base adjacentthe intersection thereof and the said grid is formed with radiallyextending arms provided with bridging webs having the upper surfacethereof substantially in a plane and having substantially uniformbearing relation with the said faces of the flangeway ribs.

10. In a railway crossing structure of substantially the characterdescribed, a box-like structure formed with a body and a plurality ofcrossing-branches including upstanding walls and a bridging'web portion,said web portion providing intersecting flangeways and wheel receivingsurfaces, and a supporting grid having radially extending armspresenting seats for the bridging web portion beneath a portion of thefiangeways.

11. In a railway crossing structure of substantially the characterdescribed, a box-like struc ture formed with a body and a plurality ofcrossing branches including upstanding walls and a bridging web portionconnecting the tops of adjacent walls, said web portion providingintersectin flangeways and wheel receiving surfaces, and a supportinggrid having radially extending arms provided with bridging webspresenting seats for the bridging web ,portion beneath a portion of theflangeways.

12. In a railway crossing structure of substantially the characterdescribed, a box-like structure formed with a body and a plurality ofcrossing branches including upstanding walls and a bridging web portionconnecting the tops of adjacent walls, said web portion providingintersecting flangeways and wheel receiving surfaces, and a supportinggrid, said supporting grid being provided with a hub presenting a seatfor the bridging web portion beneath the fiangeways adjacent theirintersection and radially extending arms provided with recessesterminating at the hub and presenting seats for the bridging web portionbeneath a portion of the flangeways outwardly of their intersection.

13. In a railway crossing structure of. substantiallyv the characterdescribed, a box-like structure formed with a body and a plurality ofcrossing branches including upstanding walls and a bridging web portionconnecting the tops of adjacent walls, said web portion providingintersecting flangeways and wheel receiving sur-' faces, said bridgingweb portion beneath the flangeways presenting fiat grid engagingsurfaces, and a supporting grid having radially extending armspresenting flat surfaces engaging said grid engaging surfaces beneath aportion of said flangeways.

14. In a railway crossing structure of substantially the characterdescribed a box-like structure formed with a body and a plurality ofcrossing branches including upstanding .walls and a bridging web portionconnecting thetops of ad- 'jacent walls, said Web portion providingintersecting fiangeways and wheel receiving surfaces,

v ways of said crossing.

16. A cast metal grid of integral construction for a railway crossinghaving intersecting flangeways, comprising a hub and radially extendingarms, each of said'arms comprising upstanding Webs integrally formedwith a bridging Web forsupport of the flangeways of said crossing.

17. A cast metal grid of integral construction for a railway crossinghaving intersecting flange- Ways, comprising a central body portion andradially extending arms each, provided with spacedwalls connectedtogether by a connecting wall to provide recesses on the underside ofsaid grid which terminate in spaced relation at the central body wherebya-hub is formed therebetween, said hub and connecting walls beingprovided for support of the fiangeways of said crossing.

18. The process of producing a railway cross ing, comprising the stepsof fashioning said crossing of box-like structure wherein the sameincludes a bridging web portion having the upper surface thereof formedwith pads, positioning a grid in supporting relation to said' bridgingweb, work-hardening said pads while said grid serves as an anvil insupporting relation to said web, and securing said grid in saidsupporting position with respect to said web to complete the assembly. g

19. In a process of producing a railway crossing characterized by beingof box-like construction embracing therein a separately formedsupporting grid connected thereto, the steps of fashioning said crossingof box-like structure wherein the same includes a bridging web portionhaving the upper surface thereof formed with pads, positioning said gridin supporting relation to said bridging web, and work-hardening saidpads with said grid serving'as an anvil in supporting relation to saidweb.

EARNSHAW COOK. ALBERT F. HUBER. JAMES R. HEWITT, JR.

CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION.

Patent'No. 2,218,605 October 22, who.

, EARNSHAW 0001?, ET AL.

F It is hereby certified that error appears in the printd specification*of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows Page Lfirst column, line 20,'cl a1'mlO, after the word "pottion" fir stocurrence, in-

sertconnectin'g the tops of adjacht wills; and that the said LettersPatent hofild be re ad'with' this oz rection therein that the same maycor;- ifor-m to the r ecord of the case in the Patent Office.

' Signedand sealed this 5rd. day of Decembr, A. D. 191.10.

Henry Van Arsqlale,

05 Rating Commissioner of Patents.

